The Barthel Index is a simple to administer tool for assessing self care and mobility activities of daily living. It is widely used in geriatric assessment settings. Reliability, validity and overall utility are rated as good to excellent. Information is gained from observation, self report or informant report. It takes approximately 5/10 minutes to complete if the observational method is used.262

Guidelines for scoring:

The index should be used as a record of what a patient does, not as a record of what a patient could do

The main aim is to establish degree of independence from any help, physical or verbal, however minor and for whatever reason

The need for supervision renders the patient not independent

Usually the patient's performance over the preceding 24/48 hours is important, but occasionally longer periods will be relevant

Middle categories imply that the patient supplies over 50% of the effort

Steinberg MA, Cartwright CM, Najman JM, MacDonald SM, Williams GM. Healthy ageing, health dying: community and health professional perspectives on end of life decision making: report to the Research and Development Grant Advisory Committee (RADGAC) of the Department of Human Services and Health. University of Queensland Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, February 1996.

Australian Council for Safety and Quality in Health Care. Preventing falls and harm from falls. Best practice guidelines for Australian hospitals and residential aged care facilities. Canberra, ACT: Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, 2005; in press.

Ibid.

Ibid.

Ibid.

Guideline for the prevention of falls in older persons. American Geriatrics Society, British Geriatrics Society, and American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Panel on Falls Prevention. J Am Geriatr Soc 2001;49:664-72.